Sedimentary records of recent environmental change in Lake Baikal, Siberia

Flower, Roger J.; Mackay, Anson W.; Rose, Neil L.; Boyle, J.L.; Dearing, John A.; Appleby, P. G.; Kuzmina, A. E.; Granina, L. Z.

doi:10.1177/095968369500500307

Cited by 30 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…The surface-particle concentration and accumulation rate are very low compared with similar lakes in areas of high deposition of atmospheric pollutants in the UK and Scandinavia (Flower et al, 1987;1990;Wik and Renberg, 1991). Lake-surface sediment concentrations similar to that in KOL1 do occur elsewhere, in the Shetland Islands (NE Scotland) and in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco (Rose, 1995). However, where sediment SCP contamination is very small and where the sediment-accumulation rate is low, it is likely that sediment mixing combined with sediment-sectioning techniques does not provide sufficient resolution to give a very accurate history of energy-generation emissions.…”

Section: Sediment Contaminationmentioning

confidence: 95%

Sedimentary records of the extent and impact of atmospheric contamination from a remote Siberian highland lake

et al. 1997

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The Central Asian Khamar Daban Mountain Range (SE Siberia) is a remote region with softwater lakes that probably receive atmospheric pollution from local industry as well as via long-distance transport. Palaeolimnological evidence of the impact of atmospheric pollution at one isolated and otherwise undisturbed highland site in the Khamar Daban, Lake Kholodnoye, was obtained. Short sediment cores were analysed for radio-isotopes, to establish a sediment chronology. The sediment accumulation rate in core KOL1 is slow (4 mg dry sediment cm -2 yr -1 , or 0.3 mm yr -1 ) but trace metal (notably Pb and Zn) and spheroidal carbonaceous particle profiles show increases beginning at 2-cm (1920s) and 1.3-cm (1940s) depth, respectively. The trace metal profiles are essentially corroborated by KOL2, a replicate core analysed at a Russian laboratory. Diatom analysis revealed no evidence of recent acidification or indeed of any marked floristic change during the twentieth century (upper 2.5 cm of sediment). Lack of catchment disturbance was indicated by very uniform pollen frequencies throughout the core. Lake-water chemistry indicated an excess of sulphate. Both the diatom and base cation stratigraphies showed a small but sustained change over the entire 28 cm of the core. Maximum floristic change in sedimentary diatom assemblages occurred around 7 cm sediment depth, approximately dated to the mid-eighteenth century. Small but gradual up-core increases in Na, K and Mg indicate a disturbance in the delivery of minerals from the catchment to the lake. The sedimentary profiles of trace metals and spheroidal carbonaceous particles show that the site is contaminated by low-level but nevertheless significant atmospheric pollution. This contamination occurred during the twentieth century. Small changes in the diatom and other geochemical sedimentary records predate these industrial impacts and so could reflect longer-term catchment weathering processes and/or indirect effects of climate change.

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Section: Sediment Contaminationmentioning

confidence: 95%

Sedimentary records of the extent and impact of atmospheric contamination from a remote Siberian highland lake

et al. 1997

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“…The known sedimentary record of Lake Baikal spans a time interval of 10 million years, and all its diatom-rich layers consist of species found nowhere else (Loginova & Khursevich, 1986;Bezrukova et al, 1991;Bradbury et al, 1994;Flower et al, 1995;Edlund et al, 1995;Grachev et al, 1997;Grachev et al, 1998;Likhoshway, 1999;Khursevich et al, 2001). Ancient species have become extinct, giving place to extant endemic diatoms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

The role of endemic diatom algae in the phytoplankton of Lake Baikal

et al. 2006

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An estimate of the role of endemic diatom algae of Lake Baikal, their contribution to numerical abundance and to biomass, was obtained on the basis of long-term monitoring in the pelagic zone, and in shallow water bays and near the mouths of rivers. Endemic diatoms are distributed over a major part of the lake, except for shallow-water bays. During a major part of the year, they dominate in biomass and in numerical abundance, making a major contribution to the rate of accumulation of modern sediments.

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“…The increasing trend of spheroidal carbonaceous particles in Lake Baikal sediment records is considered as a hint for contamination of the lake by atmospheric pollution (Flower et al, 1995). The highest concentrations of these particles which originate from coal-burning factories were found in the southern basin of the lake (Flower, 1998;Rose et al, 1998).…”

Section: Atmospheric Pollutionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Stress response in Baikalian sponges exposed to pollutants

et al. 2006

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In a first biomarker-based study in Lake Baikal, we demonstrated that the heat shock protein Hsp70, a biomarker of exposure, is present in various endemic sponge species of the lake. The expression of Hsp70 was induced following heat stress in tissue or dissociated cells of the Baikalian sponges, Baikalospongia intermedia, Lubomirskia fusifera, and Lubomirskia abietina. Increased Hsp70 levels were still visible after a recovery period of 24 h. Exposure of B. intermedia to lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) caused a strong induction of Hsp70 in this sponge, while copper (Cu) was not effective. However, all these heavy metals were able to induce DNA damage, a biomarker of effect, in B. intermedia, as determined by Fast Micromethod. Induction of DNA damage in B. intermedia was also observed after exposure to the organochlorines tetrachloroguaiacol and pentachlorophenol, which are released by pulp bleaching. The Baikalsk Pulp and Paper Plant (BPPP) is considered to be one main potential source of pollution of the lake. Investigations of the influence of the waste water from the final refinement and aeration pond of BPPP revealed a concentration-dependent increase in Hsp70 expression in B. intermedia. In addition, the effluents of the pond were able to induce DNA damage. The basal level of DNA single-strand breaks/alkali-labile sites in B. intermedia collected close to the site where the BPPP effluents are discharged into the lake was higher than that in sponges collected at an unpolluted site. Our results suggest that Baikalian sponges are suitable bioindicators to monitor water quality and ecosystem health of the lake.

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Sedimentary records of recent environmental change in Lake Baikal, Siberia

Cited by 30 publications

References 19 publications

Sedimentary records of the extent and impact of atmospheric contamination from a remote Siberian highland lake

Sedimentary records of the extent and impact of atmospheric contamination from a remote Siberian highland lake

The role of endemic diatom algae in the phytoplankton of Lake Baikal

Stress response in Baikalian sponges exposed to pollutants

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